Language Arts

Performance Task (End of Unit):

• After reading folktales and fables about the wolf as a character in fiction and reading about real wolves in an informational text, write a story about a problem encountered by real wolves. Include descriptions of wolves and their actions based on facts and details from the text Face to Face with Wolves.

Key Success Criteria:

• Write descriptions of your wolf characters and their actions using the facts and details you learned about real wolves.
• Base your story on a problem that real wolves face.
• Write dialogue that shows what the characters are thinking and feeling.
• Write a story where the order of events makes sense from beginning to end.

The 4C's Integration:

• Students could work with a partner to develop a plan for the story.
• Students could dictate their planning page.
• Students could use pictures in their planning page to support the development of their narrative.
• The narratives can be of varying length, depending on students’ literacy and language skills.

Assessment: Selected Response and Short Answer Questions:

Students read a new folktale, “Fox and Wolf.” Then they respond to text-dependent and short answer questions that demonstrate their ability to recount the story, determine the central lesson, and describe the characters, as well as how their actions contribute to the sequence of events. Students are also asked to explain how the illustrations that accompany the folktale contribute to what is conveyed through words and to determine the meaning of unfamiliar literal and non-literal language.

Assessment: Part 1: Character Analysis and Opinion Writing:

Part 1 . Students read a new fable, “The Wolves and the Sheep,” and then complete a Character chart to help them respond to text-dependent questions that ask them to describe the main characters and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of events. Students also use a variety of strategies to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words and phrases from the story. Then they use the information they have gathered to write a three-to-five-sentence opinion paragraph that answers the questions: “What is the best word to describe the wolves in this story? Why?” Students will need to support their opinion with at least two reasons, use linking words, and provide a concluding statement.

Part 2: Reading Fluently. Students will read aloud one of three texts: “The Tricky Wolf and the Rats” (folktale, Lexile 620), “The Wolf and the Sheep” (fable, Lexile 700), or “The Wolf in the Park” (poem, Lexile 780).

Assessment: Reading a New Section of Face to Face With Wolves:

“Life in the Pack” . For this assessment, students read a new section from Face to Face with Wolves and respond to text-dependent and short answer questions. Students are asked to explain the gist of this section, answer questions using evidence from the text, and determine the meaning of unfamiliar words.

Assessment: Reading and Writing about Wolves

Students read a new section from Face to Face with Wolves. In the first part of this assessment, students determine the main idea of the section and identify key details that helped them understand the main idea. Students then answer text-dependent and short answer questions focused on using evidence from the text, author’s point of view, and determining the meaning of unfamiliar words. In the last part of the assessment, students plan and write a paragraph in response to a prompt to explain their own point of view about wolves.

Podcast:

TBD

Engineering